As the battle ended, the host, Hana walked onto the stage and spoke.
Nathan bowed politely to the surrounding Celestian spectators and quietly waited for Hana to reach his side.
"Nathan-san, you just defeated an entire national team all by yourself. Do you have anything you'd like to say about that?"
Hana held the microphone out toward Nathan as she asked.
As the host of the tournament, Hana was also deeply shocked by this powerful Trainer.
It was her first time seeing someone actually solo an entire national team.
It was just a shame that Nathan wasn't from their country—otherwise, she might have admired him even more.
"Just one national team. I still have eight more teams to face. Let's talk again after I've secured first place in the Pacific."
Nathan replied with full confidence.
This was only the first round—he couldn't afford to get cocky just for beating one team.
'I'm a humble citizen after all' Nathan thought.
Though that might be how Nathan saw himself, in the eyes of others, he came off as incredibly arrogant!
"Oh? From what you're saying, does that mean you intend to keep challenging full national teams all on your own in the upcoming matches too?"
Hana's eyes lit up as she asked.
"That's right. It'll still be just me in the rest of the matches."
Nathan nodded.
"But from the information I have, there's still one remaining Celestian contestant who hasn't been eliminated yet. Why don't you let her take part?"
Hana glanced at her cue card as she asked.
"Oh, her? Look what I've got here."
Nathan said as he pulled out a Dynamax Candy from who-knows-where.
...
Seeing the candy in Nathan's hand, Hana was speechless.
This guy was actually tricking her into doing a product promo!
"Isn't that the Dynamax Candy you mentioned last time?"
She said with clear exasperation.
"Exactly. She's busy negotiating a distribution deal with local agencies. If you're interested, feel free to contact me!"
Nathan said, casually strolling off the stage.
Back at the waiting area, Nathan plopped down next to Evelyn.
Evelyn silently covered her face and scooted away.
She really couldn't bring herself to sit next to him.
If you want to advertise, just pay for a proper campaign—why humiliate yourself in front of the entire arena?
Once might be forgivable… but this is the third time already...
Although Nathan's match was over, the tournament continued with other countries' teams.
He didn't leave the venue and instead sat in the waiting area watching the matches.
Halfway through, Nathan started to feel some pressure.
Compared to other countries, the team from Josan was clearly quite weak.
Nathan had managed to beat them solo with ease, but facing other national teams wouldn't be so simple.
In particular, there was one person from Valar's team that caught his attention—Fujiwara Taka.
In today's match, he had only used three Elite-class Pokémon.
That wasn't unusual in a tournament setting.
What was unusual, however, was the obvious sense that Fujiwara was holding back.
After the match, the rest of his team treated him with great respect.
"Do you have any info on Fujiwara Taka?"
Nathan turned and asked Evelyn.
"Didn't you already go through all the files?"
Evelyn asked, puzzled.
Someone like Nathan should have read all that intel ages ago.
"No, I think the data's incomplete. He's definitely hiding something—or more accurately, he's hiding a particular Pokémon that he's never revealed before."
Nathan said, his tone deadly serious.
Evelyn rolled her eyes.
What are you, a woman with a sixth sense now?
If this guy's intuition was that sharp, why hadn't her sixth sense picked up on anything?
…
After the match, Nathan and the others parted ways at the arena gates.
They weren't staying at the same hotel, so they had to go separately.
Evelyn and the others had actually been planning a little celebration for Nathan's spectacular victory,
but he declined, saying they'd celebrate after he won the Pacific Tournament instead.
When the first taxi arrived, Nathan let Evelyn and the others go first.
Before the second taxi could arrive, a minivan pulled up in front of him.
The van door slowly opened, and Hana Nozomi stepped out.
"Waiting for a ride? Want me to give you a lift?"
She asked with a smile.
Nathan hadn't expected her to offer him a ride—but since this kind of opportunity came knocking, of course he didn't refuse.
He got into the van with Yue and Chad.
Other than the driver and Hana, only her assistant was inside, so it didn't feel cramped.
"Nathan-kun, were you serious about what you said earlier after the match?"
Once the vehicle started moving, Hana asked with curiosity.
"You mean the agency thing?"
Nathan was caught off guard.
So she approached me because she wants to be a distributor?
But thinking about it, it made sense.
As a celebrity in nation of Valar, Hana had some financial clout.
And she had plenty of popularity there—if she landed the exclusive agency rights, sales definitely wouldn't be a problem.
"Yes. When you mentioned it after the match, I got curious and wanted to give it a try."
Hana looked at Nathan with anticipation.
To be honest, she had been a Pokémon celebrity for a while now.
At 24 years old, she had already spent seven years in front of the camera.
Like the infamous "seven-year itch" in marriage, she was getting tired of the lifestyle.
But she hadn't quit because there was no stable source of income waiting for her outside that world.
Now, if she could seal this deal with Nathan, she could retire from showbiz this very year.
"Of course."
Someone offering themselves as a business partner? Nathan wasn't going to turn that down—especially not a high-profile celebrity like her.
"Really? Then can you tell me what the requirements are to become a distributor?"
Hana's eyes sparkled with hope.
Is this finally my chance to leave the entertainment world behind?
"There aren't many. Just pay the agency fee and be able to sell Dynamax Candies. That's it."
Nathan said bluntly.
No matter the product, agency requirements rarely went beyond those two points.
Hearing how easy it was to become a distributor, Hana got a little emotional.
She did have some savings.
After all, with her popularity, money came in fast.
She wouldn't call herself super rich, but as long as the agency fee wasn't too high, she could probably manage it.
"Then… can I ask how much the agency fee is?"
She asked a bit nervously.
She currently had about 130 million Pokécoins in savings.
It sounded like a lot, but for something Pokémon-related, it really wasn't.
Training Pokémon was incredibly expensive—so naturally, business in this industry wasn't cheap either.
"The fee is 300 million Pokécoins per year. But I guarantee you'll make far more than that in return."
Nathan said after thinking for a moment.
He had already discussed this with Evelyn before heading abroad.
Considering the profitability and exclusivity of Dynamax Candy, 300 million a year was actually pretty reasonable.
"Three hundred million?!"
Hana looked a bit troubled.
She really didn't have that kind of money on hand.
Even if she borrowed from friends, who would be willing to lend her that much?
"What, is it too expensive?"
Nathan asked.
Compared to the potential profits, that number really wasn't high.
"No, no! It's not that I think it's too expensive—it's just that I don't have that much money available right now..."
Hana lowered her head, clearly embarrassed.
Meanwhile, Yue and Chad were completely stunned by this conversation.
They knew Nathan ran some kind of business—after all, where else could he get the money to raise his Pokémon?
But they hadn't expected his business to be this big.
Just the agency fee alone was in the hundreds of millions!
And it wasn't even a one-time fee—it was yearly!
After getting married, Yue and Chad had combined their finances.
Even so, their combined savings only amounted to a little over 100 million Pokécoins —and most of that was Yue's.
Chad had spent most of his on training Pokémon.
Nathan fell silent for a moment.
He didn't really want to give up on Hana as a potential agent.
To be honest, compared to other businesspeople in the nation of Valar, Hana seemed far more trustworthy.
(End of Chapter)